Bizarrely, two new phrases crept into usage in the English language over the Christmas period.

One was “Slapgate”, a noun that refers to the moment when Pope Francis repeatedly slapped the wrist of a woman who clasped his hand and pulled him towards her, almost dragging him off his feet.

The other was “Pope-slapping”, a compound verb to describe the action of a person who frantically slaps the arm of another.

It is mischievous stuff, and very sad for the Church, and the Holy Father has apologised for his “bad example”.